It used to be that hair removal was strictly a female thing. Unless you were a bodybuilder, cyclist, swimmer or dancer, chances are your body hair remained untouched.
Not so anymore. Experts report that more and more men are opting for the same grooming rights as women – including smooth body skin. The hottest trend these days is the head! Bald is beautiful and laser hair removal on the head does the job extremely well. Not all men want it all removed, but increasingly they do want it thinned out, on their back and chest, for example. But unlike women, for whom hair removal is second nature by junior high school, men often find themselves at a loss for how to deal with excess body hair. For those men, here’s the lowdown on the most effective hair removal available today.
Laser Hair Removal Treatments
What It Does: Using laser light energy to penetrate the hair shaft, it actually kills the hair root. This doesn’t kill the follicle (the place where hair growth starts). So technically, another hair can grow in its place, but it’s difficult. That means results of laser hair removal last a fairly long time, oftentimes forever with a quick touch up here or there. Each treatment lasts approximately 30 minutes depending on the size of the area being treated and 5 treatments usually do the trick.
Best For: Removing or reducing hair on back, chest, stomach, shoulders, and genital area. Works best on light skin with dark hair; not suitable for blond or white hair. Black skin responds well to only one type of laser, the Nd: YAG.
Cost : $400-500 per treatment. Packages typically have discounts built-in.
Lasting Result: After all laser hair removal treatments are completed, results could be almost permanent, with touch-up treatments annually or biannually to maintain results.
Most men utilize laser hair removal for the back, upper arms, and chest and most want it thinned out, not removed — something which lasers can easily accomplish. In fact, other than electrolysis, laser hair removal is the only hair removal treatment that allows for thinning, rather than complete removal. While the average man needs five to seven sessions, as men age, more hair grows, especially on their backs. As such, touch-up laser hair removal treatments are usually needed on average once a year.